[Year 12 IT Apps] McKinnon classes 2011

[Kent Beveridge]

Hey there Mark,
perhaps you can work on the 3d application of design(AutoCad and 'wireframe' design drawing tools?) to your paper aeroplanes and then discuss with the kiddies the intricies of trigonometric applications and differential/integral equations relating to aircraft design.(multiple integrals are used in creating mathematical modelling for wing and fuselage design..its actually quite fascinating!)

I too, have noticed an increased number of students starting to take on the programming side of things..albeit in relation to their home computer gaming environment...but they are still quite 'practised' in some elements of coding. My year 10 class doing the cert 2 in I.T. happen to also be avid online gamers at home and frequently do their own coding to enhance their gameplay..so naturally I encourage them to develop their skills. And yes, at times in class, we do rant on about gaming stuff(odd for me as I am not a gamer!).

So much so, that I have decided to get my skates on and tailor their studies next year around enhancing their coding skills and integrating this into the Cert3 they have chosen for 2011.
Strangely, I am actually excited myself as its trying something a bit different and out of my own personal comfort zone.

Whoever says we cant learn as teachers too, is kidding themselves! Looks like I might be seeing the start of a reinvention of myself?

Software Dev in 2012?  A strong possibility for this lot!  Oh, and my current 9's may follow a similar path I reckon..

KB.

Kent Beveridge
ICT Co-ordinator, St.Brigids CSC, HORSHAM,Vic,Aus.
________________________________
From: itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au [itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au] on behalf of Mark KELLY [kel at mckinnonsc.vic.edu.au]
Sent: Friday, 10 September 2010 9:00 AM
To: Year 12 IT Applications Teachers' Mailing List; Year 12 Software Development Teachers' Mailing List
Subject: [Year 12 IT Apps] McKinnon classes 2011

It's really odd!

ITA, which has run continuously forever with good numbers has barely scraped a class together for next year by combining year elevens and twelves into one small ITA class.

SD, which has only run every 3 or so years (with a small cohort when it did run), is nearly over-subscribed.

There don't seem to be any clear local causes for such a great change of attitude (e.g. changes of teachers or big changes in middle-years IT offerings) so I can only put it down to either something in the water, or the changes to the study design.

To be fair, I haven't heard kids explicitly blaming the ITA study design, and for some reason they seem dead keen on programming in our year 10 Info Systems elective. My year 11 IT classes have been dead quiet for 2 weeks with the kids busily coding in VB6.  Last year I had to beat them with chairs to finish the VB material... this year I can sit up the front folding paper aeroplanes and clipping my toenails while they beaver away and sort out problems within their own ranks.

Odd!

--
Mark Kelly
Information Systems Manager; Reporting Manager
McKinnon Secondary College
McKinnon Rd McKinnon 3204, Victoria, Australia
Direct line / Voicemail: 8520 9085
School Phone +613 8520 9000, Fax +613 9578 9253
kel at mckinnonsc.vic.edu.au<mailto:kel at mckinnonsc.vic.edu.au>
VCE IT Lecture notes: http://vceit.com
Moderator: IT Applications Mailing List

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